Can Web 2.0 tools be used to improve our students' scientific communication skills? How can these tools improve our instructional practice?

Recording Detailed Observations

• Have students record their observation on a wiki and share these with the class. Does the class require some further explanation or were the observations sufficiently detailed? EXAMPLE
• While the students are conducting an experiment, use the digital camera to capture some of the interesting phenomena that you want them to observe. Upload the pictures to a Voice Thread and end class by having the students read their observations into a microphone to narrate the Voice Thread. This makes a great review to start the next class period. EXAMPLE

Interpreting Tables and Graphs

• Students can publish a table of data on their wiki. EXAMPLE
• Save a graph from Data Studio as a jpeg file and upload that to the wiki. (To do this they must make a screen shot and paste it into Paint. Next, crop the image, add some text, and save the file as a jpeg file.)
• Show student graphs on a Voice Thread and use comments to identify the parts of the graph including the independent and dependent variables and the units of measurement used. Next, have students describe the relationship between the variables. For example, they may say, "As the pressure increased the temperature inside the bottle also increased."

Summarizing Research

• Begin class by having students conduct background research on the topic for the day. Write a summary of their findings on their wiki and share these with the class. Students can add links to website they find but should be discouraged from copying and pasting any images. EXAMPLE
• Use PageFlakes to keep track of a students research progress. As they read articles, they can put a link in a Bookmark flake, and use a Notes flake to jot down the "big ideas" and "supporting details" of the article. This way you can view progress, and add your own notes to the students work or add a good article to their Bookmarks for them to read next. Example

Writing the Steps of a Procedure

• A great way to help students write the steps of a procedure is to record them on a Voice Thread or in a Podcast. Have pictures of each step of the procedure ready as you explain the experiment then have the students write the steps for the procedure. As they read them for the Voice Thread, have the class help them edit their step so that it is clear, concise, and in the proper voice. These can be easily deleted and re-recorded to improve each written step.
• As the students conduct an experiment have one student say the step out loud in a microphone attached to an ipod or use the internal mic on a laptop computer. Have another student take a picture of each step with a digital camera to be added later to illustrate the procedure.

Explaining an Important Concept

• Students often have trouble writing clear explanations. Generate a list of the key words needed to explain a concept, listing them on the wiki for reference. Next have students construct clear sentences that use the vocabulary words correctly. Put these sentences in a logical order. By doing this exercise on the wiki, the students can refer back to their work at a later time.
• Create an audio podcast in which students need to explain a concept with the context of a unique situation. (Three scientists go to the mall, for example.) Allow the students time to write a script for their podcast and to record themselves. As other students listen to the podcast they can identify all of the important vocabulary words that were used and tell whether the words were used correctly.

Drawing Conclusions about an Experiment

• In order to draw conclusions, student need to integrate many of the communication skills already described. As a class, use a picture of a data table, a picture of a graph, and some other pictures from a lab experiment to create a voice thread. First, add comments to demonstrate how the table supports or disproves the hypothesis. Next, address the ways the graph supports or disproves the hypothesis. Finally, use the important concepts from the unit to explain the results. Students can also add pictures and comments to show how the experiment can be related to their own lives.